Our Clacky

I love this picture of Cloey. It is SO her! She is such a fun daughter to raise. She tries really hard to be obedient and she constantly amazes me with her desires to be good and stand up for what is right. She is also quite the little missionary. But, she is still learning boundaries. When I say boundaries, I mean personal space boundaries. She is not shy very often and she loves to give people hugs (although at times it feels more like a tackle). She also has this wacky fun side to her. In our home, we lovingly refer to her as "Clacky" when she is in one of those moods. She is hilarious when she's like that but we are still trying to teach her that sometimes she needs to keep the "clackiness contained" :). On Friday, Cory and I sat down with Katelund and Cloey and talked to them about some things that we want each of them to work on and get better at. As they continually work on these things over time, they will be rewarded, nothing better than a good incentive, right? One thing we want Cloey to work on is manners. It has been so cute to watch her this weekend as she has been trying so hard to be so polite.

We went on a family bike ride this weekend. As we were riding along the trail, Cory wanted to show us where he had his biking accident a couple days earlier (he had gone mountain biking with a friend and his bike slipped under him on a really rocky trail. He has some major cuts and road rash all over his body now, just one more thing to add to his softball injury a couple weeks earlier and his second round of poison ivy from an Elder's Quorum service activity). As we went off the road, Katelund told me she needed to go to the bathroom. So I took Katelund off the trail behind some trees and Cory kept riding since anytime he stopped Makalya would start crying (he was pulling them in a bike trailer). After we were done, we hurried onto our bikes to catch up. In Katelund's mad rush to be in the front with Cory, she fell off her bike and scratched up her hands and leg. We all gathered around to make sure she was okay. She was doing some serious crying. Then Hailey and Makayla both started crying as well. Cory and I just looked at each other, laughing on the inside, as we realized how pathetic our situation was. Amidst all the commotion, I looked over and saw Cloey quietly carrying Katelund's bike up to the trail for her. It was so sweet. I was so touched by her quiet and simple act of kindness.

Those are the moments that I live for as a mother. Yes, she is all about getting her incentive, but I don't think that had anything to do with why she did what she did. She did it because she loves her sister. She did it because she is just that kind of a person. A little person that continually amazes me with her huge capacity to love. Our family would be so incomplete without Cloey. She brings so much love, spunk, and excitement to our home. Life just wouldn't be the same without our little Clacky.